


Slip Of The Tongue

by auburnautumn



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-30
Updated: 2013-11-30
Packaged: 2018-01-03 00:41:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 712
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1063622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/auburnautumn/pseuds/auburnautumn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Karkat accidentally says something out loud. At least it's in Alternian.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Slip Of The Tongue

It begins as a quiet moment between Karkat and Jade.

They're sitting at opposite ends of the kitchen table, a dwindling stack of pancakes situated between them. They're not talking to each other at the moment, but that's okay, because they don't have to. All they really need is each other's company.

Jade, who made the pancakes (homemade, not with the Betty Crocker mix -- especially not the Betty Crocker mix), is wearing a white apron over her slightly too-big pajamas. Her hair is, as always, an unruly black mess, and her electric green eyes are gleaming behind her glasses.

The troll briefly glances at Jade as he moves to take another bite of his pancakes. A fleeting thought enters his mind: _'how does she look so beautiful so early in the morning?'_

"...What did you just say?"

A second after the question comes out of Jade's mouth, Karkat almost chokes on his pancakes. Fuck. He just said his thoughts out loud, didn't he? Of course he did.

 _'Way to go, Vantas,'_ He thinks. _'_ _Embarrassed yourself first thing in the morning. At least you can cross that off your fucking to-do list for today.'_

Needless to say, the desire to punch his past-self in the face is stronger than ever (even though it's really only his past-self by 3 seconds).

"Karkat! Seriously, I don't speak Alternian. What did you just say?" Jade asks, raising an eyebrow. She's leaning over the table and pointing a ripped piece of pancake toward his direction, almost as if she's threatening to hurt him with it. The notion seems ridiculous, but Karkat knows better than to underestimate Jade. Given the time, she probably could find some way to harm him with the syrupy meal.    

Karkat pauses, the weight of Jade's words sinking in. Especially the word 'Alternian.' Oh. Huh. Well. Even if he did ask an incredible cheesy question out loud, at least he said it in Alternia-- ack, Jade's been looking at him expectantly for some time now. Better say something fast.  

"I didn't say anything."

 _'Oh, yeah. That line was the epitome of fucking brilliance. Jade's really going to fall for that.'_ Karkat thinks, mentally berating himself.    

"That's a lie." Jade scoffs. She knows it's one because she stared at Karkat's moving lips as he muttered those incomprehensible words under his breath. She knows he wasn't speaking English, because he was rolling and clicking his tongue and growling his r's and speaking his words with too many consonants.

"You don't know that! Your aspect is space, not truth!"

"Truth isn't even an aspect!"

"That only furthers my point!"

"Look, did you speak Alternian or not, fuckass?!"

"Fine, I did! Are you happy?" Karkat admits, holding his hands out for emphasis.

"No!"

"What? What more do you want from me?"

"Tell me the meaning of what you said before!"

"The meaning of what I said before?" Karkat repeats nervously. He knows that he can't exactly lie to Jade -- she's good at telling when he's lying. He has to think quickly. "I said..."

He rambles in Alternian.

_'How does she look so beautiful so early in the morning?_

_She looks so cute when she laughs._

_I haven’t met a person who’s as nice and caring as she is._

_She makes me feel so happy when I’m with her.'_

"Well," Karkat pauses, "I added a few things onto that, but... yeah. That's... basically what I said."

"What did that mean, though?"

"Look," Karkat sighs, "I'd really, really rather not say. Okay? I might tell you later. I will tell you later. Eventually."

"You're really..." Jade frowns, a bit confused. "You're really not going to tell me what any of that means now?"

"No, I am not."

Jade pauses, and he's afraid that she's going to push the subject and get the meaning of what he just said out of him. But instead, she just nods -- albeit a bit slowly.

"Alright, if that's what you want." She looks a bit upset, and for a second, Karkat's worried he hurt her feelings. But then she snatches his plate of pancakes and grins, quickly walking away. "But these pancakes are mine!"

He doesn't mind about the food.

After all, pancakes are nothing compared to rambles about your red-feelings for one Jade Harley.

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a drabble exchange with jadekat-inspiration on tumblr. The prompt was this: Karkat telling Jade tender things in Alternian but refusing to translate them in English for her


End file.
